Nationally-Ranked St. John Fisher Sweeps RIT
The St. John Fisher College softball team swept host Rochester Institute of Technology in a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon. Fisher eked out a come-from-behind 2-1 win in the opening game before routing the Tigers 10-0 in a mercy-rule shortened five-inning nightcap. The Cardinals are now 14-4 on the season and are still ranked No. 21 nationally as a new poll will be released on Monday afternoon.
Game One – Fisher 2, RIT 1
After RIT took the lead 1-0 in the second inning the Cardinals answered the challenge in the fourth, scoring the only two runs they would need for the victory. Sarah Fordyce hit a two-run homer in the inning, plating Michelle Townsend who was pinch running for Leanne Merchant. Merchant earned first base when she was hit by an errant pitch.
Danielle Leone (8-1, 1.26 ERA) pitched the complete-game, grabbing her eighth victory of the year, allowing just five hits, one run and one walk while striking out seven RIT batters.
Fordyce finished the game 2-for-3, showing her power with a double along with the home run, collecting two RBI and the scoring the game-winning run. Kayla Goodberlet, Jennifer Martin and Merchant all finished with a hit, with Martin’s going for extra bases with a double.
Game Two – Fisher 10, RIT 0 (Five Innings)
The Cardinals used the third and fourth innings to gain control of the outing, scoring three runs in the third before exploding for seven runs in the next inning.
Fordyce continued her hot streak with another double and 2-for-3 performance, this time crossing the plate once and driving in two runs. Merchant bombed a homer of her own, finishing 1-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. Kelly Jones and Jennifer Vanek each had two hits, with Jones scoring twice and collecting two RBI while Vanek was plated twice. Kaylee Tallman, Megan Rogers and Goodberlet each finished with base hits.
Sarah Stefanon moved to 6-3 on the season, rebounding after a tough loss against the University of Rochester earlier in the week where the pitcher only surrendered two hits. The junior pitched all five innings, allowing just three hits and one walk while fanning five Tigers hitters in the shutout.